Alien Skin Market by Lizzy Bequin

CHAPTER 24: JRAYK

Tristn stomped down the main corridor toward the front of the ship, and Jrayk followed after him, grumbling to himself and unsuccessfully willing his erection to go away. When they reached the cockpit, both Raksha ducked inside. As soon as the door was closed, Tristn whirled around, ears back, fangs bared in a menacing snarl. He pointed one clawed finger in Jrayk’s direction.

“What in the Goddess’s name were you doing back there?”

Jrayk refused to be shaken by Tristn’s display of aggression. He leaned back against the closed door, casually crossed his arms in front of his chest, and returned Tristn’s icy stare.

“I was just getting to know our human guest. Is there a problem with that, doctor?”

Tristn growled and took a step forward, getting in Jrayk’s face.

“This isn’t a pleasure cruise, Jrayk. This is a government mission of the utmost importance. It is our job to get the human female back to Rak, where we will turn her over to the custody of the government. In the interim, she is not to be tampered with.”

Jrayk scoffed.

“Tampered with? Seriously?”

“You know exactly what I mean, Jrayk.”

Jrayk pushed Tristn aside and crossed to the front of the cockpit where he dropped into his pilot’s seat, facing out the view port at the silent churning chaos of the interstices.

“Actually, I don’t know what you mean,” he said. “So I touched her a little bit. Big voiding deal. In case you hadn’t noticed, she has an incredibly touchable body. And face. And—”

Tristn grabbed the back of Jrayk’s chair and swiveled it around to face him.

“It’s impossible not to notice with that damnable dress you provided her with. Where the hell did you get that thing, anyway? I know it wasn’t among the supply of clothing I packed.”

Jrayk smirked. “You don’t like the dress? I think it looks good on her.”

“Yes…I mean, no!” Tristn said, getting flustered. “I mean…of course I like it. But that’s not the point. This isn’t about what you or I like, Jrayk. We’ve been hired to do a job, and I intend to make sure it is completed in a professional fashion.”

Jrayk lounged back in his seat and threw one leg over the armrest.

“Fine. We’ve been hired to do a job, but we’re getting paid a damn pittance for it. I figured petting the human could be a nice bonus, that’s all.”

“I saw you back there,” Tristn growled. “I didn’t see everything, but I saw enough. You were planning on doing a lot more than petting.”

Jrayk spread his hands in an innocent gesture. “Like what? It’s not as if I could breed her, Tristn. She doesn’t even have a mating globule. Which is lucky for you by the way. If we had a Raksha female on board instead of a human, I would have laid your pompous ass out already.”

For a blip, Tristn just stared down at Jrayk in disbelief. Then the doctor tossed his head back and roared with laughter.

Jrayk felt a scorch of anger in his chest. He sprang up out of his chair, claws extracted and ears flat.

“What so funny?” he snarled. “You don’t think I could lay you out?”

Tristn just shook his head.

“It’s not that,” he chuckled. “Goddess, you really are an imbecile, Jrayk. You must be the only Raksha alive who hasn’t read Beh’thani’s book.”

Jrayk settled back into his chair and retracted his claws. He was still pissed, but his anger was overridden by his curiosity.

“What does that have to do with anything?”

“If you had read the book, you would know that Raksha males and human females can interbreed. Without a globule.”

The thought of breeding with the human female M’reen quickened Jrayk’s pulse. A few minutes ago, when they were alone together in her room, it had been pure torture. Her sweet scent and soft skin had driven him to heights of arousal more excruciating than anything he had experienced. But due to their morphological differences, he had feared there would be no way to consummate his desires.

Based on what Tristn was saying, however, that was not the case. Jrayk smiled inwardly. If Tristn knew what he was thinking now, he never would have mentioned this fact.

“How does it work?” Jrayk asked.

Tristn gave an amused snort. “Yeah right. There’s no way I’m telling a scoundrel like you, Jrayk. If you really want to know, you can read the book for yourself after we get back to Rak.” His faced darkened. “And remember, for the remainder of our voyage, there is to be no petting, touching, kissing or any other violations of the human female’s body. And as soon as she’s had a chance to rest, we’re going to provide her with more suitable clothing that provides better coverage of her skin. That way there will be less temptation. Is that clear, captain?”

Jrayk scowled up at Tristn.

“I think you’re forgetting who is in charge here, doctor. This is my ship. I’m the captain. I make the rules.”

“That may be true,” Tristn rejoined. “But I’m the one who will be submitting the official report to the government upon our return. I’d hate to have to report you for any further indiscretions. The Council might decide to withhold your precious bonus. Or worse.”

Jrayk grumbled. Just leave it to a highborn bastard like Tristn to be a tattle-tale. But Jrayk could not take his threat lightly. The truth of the matter was that he and Vaul both needed this job to go smoothly. If the mission was a success, the government had agreed to wipe out their criminal records. But if Tristn went and spoiled that with his report, Jrayk could even be looking at a prison sentence.

Tristn gave an annoyingly satisfied smirk as he turned to leave. Before he opened the door, Jrayk called to his back.

“You know what I think?” Jrayk said. “I think you’re jealous. You just want her all to yourself.”

Tristn’s body went suddenly rigid, and Jrayk knew his accusation had struck a nerve. The doctor paused in front of the closed door for a blip.

“No touching,” Tristn growled, not turning around. “No kissing. No breeding. Especially no breeding.”

Tristn opened the door and stepped through, leaving Jrayk alone in the cockpit. Jrayk listened to the clank of the doctor’s boots departing down the central corridor of the ship. Those steps paused briefly outside of M’reen’s room, then continued on to the doctor’s combined laboratory and sleeping quarters.

Yeah, he had definitely struck a nerve. Tristn felt jealous toward the human female. And honestly, Jrayk really couldn’t blame him. She was an enchanting, intoxicating little creature. It was no wonder the doctor would want her all to himself.

And yet…

When Jrayk searched his own feelings, he discovered that he was not jealous at all. He would willingly share the pleasures of the human female with his crewmates. In fact, he actually welcomed the idea, and the more he considered it, the more appealing it seemed. The human’s body was so sensitive, so responsive to touching. It only seemed right that she should be shared. She deserved multiple males to dominate her hungry little body, multiple mates to give her what she needed.

But what exactly did she need?

Jrayk leaned back in his chair, pondering. His claws flicked in and out, an unconscious habit. His cock thickened and throbbed inside his breeches as he remembered female’s lovely moans, her soft lips, her springy nipples.

He raised his wrist-comm to his mouth and called Vaul.

“What’s up, boss?”

“Do we have a copy of Beh’thani’s book on board?”